Tuesday, September 29, 2015

phrases - Exact meaning of "to kindly invite"



It is common to thank somebody for "a kind invitation". However, when somebody writes



I kindly invite you to event xyz,



does that not suggest that the person who invites the other is doing the invited person a favour? If yes, the meaning would be quite different from phrases such as



I cordially invite you ...



or




It is a pleasure to invite you ...



My google search produced many hits for the phrase "kindly invite", but all of them point to websites of non-native speakers/institutions.



Answer



The meaning of "to kindly invite" is straightforward. It means what you think it means. You are also right in thinking that it is different from the other alternatives. It appears rude, as the inviter is suggesting that he is doing them a favour. For this reason, it is uncommon to write that you are "kindly inviting" someone, the other two examples are far more common, with "cordially" being preferred.


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